


Nova Nightmares

by ChocoDrake



Series: Carry On Little Star [1]
Category: Starlight Brigade - TWRP ft. Dan Avidan (Music Video), TWRP | Tupper Ware Remix Party (Band)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Blood and Gore, Character Death, Eh maybe six times, Everyone is stressed out, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Major Character Injury, Nightmare fic with hurt comfort at the end, Nightmares, No one really dies in a nightmare but..., Nonbinary Character, Post-Canon, Strive dies like five times, Tears, What have I done!?, Ya star boi is dyin again, they/them pronouns for Strive
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-29
Updated: 2019-11-04
Packaged: 2020-05-28 18:15:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,674
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19399687
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChocoDrake/pseuds/ChocoDrake
Summary: One night the entire Starlight Brigade all had a bad nightmare which involved a certain star elf....Or; five times the Starlight Brigade lost Strive and the one time Strive lost everything.





	1. Shattered

**Author's Note:**

> This is sometime after another story I'm working on but this got done first so... This takes place in a AU but you can ignore that if you want. All you need to know about this AU however is that the elder is gone and Strive is a permanent member of the Starlight Brigade now.
> 
> Not sure if I made Sung silly enough for my taste but that's okay. This is pretty serious chapter anyway. *TW blood and a bad injury.*
> 
> ...
> 
> Chapter Summary
> 
> Sung and Strive answer a distress call and everything goes wrong.

Sung was feeling wistful today.

  
Sitting in the cockpit of his starship, head resting on his hand and the other idly tapping on the gear lever, he stared off into space. Restlessly watching the stars zip by, his mind reflecting on many things.

  
One of such things was his teammate he was traveling with.

  
Though it was true that Strive had nowhere else to go, that wasn't stopping them from going off to explore the cosmos if they so desired. It was times like these the doctor wondered why they stayed. It wasn't the loneliness or lack of confidence anymore.

  
They were family.

  
Despite the conclusion he came to, Sung frowned. Still it felt like he was holding them back in a way. Keeping them away from their true potential.

  
Are they even happy here? A songbird sings it's best when it's free after all. Was there anything they wanted to do in life besides following a rag tag crew around on adventures? Without a second thought, Sung turned on transmissions and hailed them.

  
"Strive, what's your goal in life?"

  
The star elf on his panel turned to look at their screen. Their ears still stood up with confidence but their face showed a bemused expression, clearly having been caught off guard by such a message. "Hmm?"

  
"Ever since we took down ol star thief we don't really have a goal anymore. ...Do you ever... Do you ever wonder what you want to do in life?"

  
"You're...inquisitive today." A small smile graced Strive's lips. "What I'm doing right now...?"

  
"I'm serious."

  
"I'm serious too, Sung. I'm content with my life right now. We may have stopped the star thief but there will always be evil lurking around and people to help. Even if preventing all evil by ourselves is a futile feat, at least I can take comfort in knowing I can give everyone the hope to defeat it one day." Their smile turned into a confident grin, fondness slipping into their voice. "To give people hope, that's my goal in life."

  
"Wow," Sung said in amazement. "That's quite a thing to 'Strive' for."

  
Strive rolled their eyes. A alert popped up on both of their screens, notifying both that they found the source of the distress call. "We're here."

  
"Thanks, Captain Obvious."

  
"Stop," They said, however they didn't seem annoyed.

  
Sung looked ahead. A planet of blue and warm yellow was just below them. "Hmm...I don't think this planet has ever been documented before," he mused.

  
"I could say the same about mine. Proceed with caution?" They asked.

  
"That's the plan." Sung's voice was filled with confidence but a heavy feeling weighted on him...like...

  
Like he had a bad feeling about this.

* * *

He was right to have a bad feeling. It was a trap all along. The planet's surface was littered with burnt hunks of metal that used to be starships long since shot down.

  
Whether the distress call was made by the enemy or from the residence of this planet, Sung didn't know, but what did he know was that any life on this planet was eradicated by the same droneships trying to vaporize them right now.

  
"5 o'clock. Look alive!" He called out to Strive on the radio, whom of which rolled their ship out of the way of a drone trying to ram them.

  
Sung sighed but it did nothing to sooth his nerves. These things were aggressive and wouldn't let up for anything. You'd lose them and they'd find you again, there was no escaping from them. He bet if they left the atmosphere they would still chase after them. They wouldn't make it back to the mother ship with these 'things' on their tail. Hell, they would probably be shot down long before that.

  
This wasn't going to end well, he knew. It was time for their... Secret weapon.

  
"Shall we give 'um the works?" He asked.

  
"Definitely." The determination in Strive's voice was clearly evident even through the radio.

  
The 'works' was a little something the two came up with and were practicing for a short while now. Sung never thought they would end up having to use it though.

  
He waited for the droneships to pair up with each other.

  
Wait for it...

  
Wait....

  
"Now!" Sung shouted, firing a shot off at the drones.

  
Strive swept into the fray, following right behind the grope while Sung continued to fire as a diversion. The droneships turned their attention to him and Sung sped upwards towards the calm blue sky the ships trailing behind.

  
Suddenly Sung turned and flipped his ship over, just in time to see both droneships explode like fireworks and Strive's starship emerging from the fire and destruction much like a space dolphin breaching from a wormhole.

  
A stinging wrong feeling hit Sung.

  
Something wasn't right. The flames should've faded from their ship's wing already.

  
"Strive, your right wing is on fire!" There wasn't a response. "Strive!"

  
Sung couldn't do anything but watch in horror as Strive's starship stalled out then started to careen downward, the ship gaining a concerning speed as it fell without a pilot to control it. The clashing screech of metal hitting hard rock was deafening even in the confines of the doctor's ship. Strive's starship dragged across the ground for several yards before coming to a complete stop in a smoldering heap.

  
Sung immediately landed his ship near by, jumped out and sprinted towards the crash site. Strive's starship was completely wreaked. Both wings were tore off in the crash, windshield broken and the ship's hull was either smashed in or completely ripped through in some places.

  
He almost tripped when he heard a blood curdling scream laced with fear and pain... So much pain...

  
Strive slowly dragged themselves out of the wreckage and collapsed, exhaustion taking over them.

  
Sung ran over and knelt next them to inspect their injures. He rolled them over and the sight almost made him retch. Oh god... Their gem was shattered, the only thing left of it was a few sharp shards and a deep void in their chest where their gem should be. Blood cascaded out of the void and ran down into an ever growing puddle of purple beneath them. Sung reached into the medkit he brought with him, yanked out the gauze and pressed it onto the wound.

  
Strive's eyes shot open. Their expression was that of a cornered animal, ears pinned down in fear and agony. He knew that look.

  
That was a look that said; _Please help me._

  
A pleading stare of; _Please don't let me die._

  
Sung wasn't sure he could do either of those. He didn't know what to do.

  
".............S...Sung......." They rasped painfully, their previous scream had damaged their voice. ".............I-"

  
They gasped, their face screwing up in excruciating pain and shock. Their body seized up, their mouth open like they were trying to breath but being unable to.

  
"Strive...?" Sung panicked, shaking them. "Strive!"

  
With one final jolt of their body, Strive's head lolled to the side, their hair flopping over their face. Sung's stomach dropped. He didn't want to check, didn't want to confirm what he feared, but he had to. Hesitantly, he brushed the hair out of their face. Strive had a dull gaze, their half lidded eyes staring off into nothing.

  
Sung flinched, pulling his hand away, his body trembling.

  
They were already gone.

  
Blood loss was the obvious cause for this but Sung wasn't sure nor did he care.

  
What a damn fine leader he turned out to be for letting 'this' happen.

  
He could only muster up anger. He was mad at himself. How could he let this happen!? Why!?

  
He should've known this was a trap.

  
He shouldn't have suggested that damn trick.

  
He should've known Strive hadn't practiced enough.

  
He knew the risks.

  
He couldn't do anything.

  
That's right he did nothing!

  
Nothing at all to stop this!

  
Nothing!

  
_Worthless._

  
Sung exhaled a weary, hollow sigh.

  
They just had a conversation like half an hour ago. One second Strive was there the next... gone.

  
He forgot, they may be the Starlight Brigade but that didn't mean they were invincible. They could die anywhere and at any time.

  
He couldn't believe it.

  
He gave another shaky sigh reaching under his visor to wipe his face. His hand came back wet.

  
Strive said their goal was to give people hope? How could he have hope when his team's star pupil was laying dead right in front of him?

  
For the first time in a long time, Doctor Sung didn't have the answers.


	2. Hell Hath No Fury Than A Lion Scorned.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a trip to a bar goes to hell, Commander Meouch could only think of one thing.
> 
> Why the hell is Strive here?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (TW) Gore: Swearing:
> 
> I didn't think I would drop the F-bomb in this, it just came out naturally. Meouch has a pretty good reason to swear though. :/
> 
> Chapter three is a bit of a mess right now but I'll try to get that out soon, no promisis though.
> 
> Tomorrow is my birthday? Wow, where did the month go? Not sure why I wanted to say that but if your birthday is today or tomorrow then Happy Birthday!!! <3
> 
> Oh...wait I'm gonna make you cry on your bday? Welp...I'm bad. Oopsie.

Meouch snarled, clutching his shoulder. Thick and warm liquid slipped through his fingers, trailed down his arm and dripped onto the tile floor. The strong scent of iron filled his nose. He didn't need to look to know it was his own blood.

_Damn it._

It was one thing to start a fist fight with the commander, it was another to pull a gun on him, but if those numbskulls wanted a shootout they would get one.  
Meouch fired a volley of lasers with his trusty ray gun down the hall, not aiming at anyone in particularly as all he needed was a little time in order to get to better cover. The lion-man dived behind a flipped over pool table. Should be sturdy enough, he figures.

During a pause in the fire, Meouch leaned out from behind his cover and fired a few more shots into the distance. Big crowd today, he muses.

"Meouch?!" Someone shouts over the sound of his lasers. "Are you okay!?"

Annoyed, he takes a glance at the bar, or what he presumes to be the bar, on the other side of the room spotting a head of fluffy light blue hair. In sudden recognition he did a double take.

_What the hell is Strive doing here!?_

Meouch stared in disbelief, eyes narrowing. "Cub, what are you doing here!?" He hissed.

Strive blinked at him owlishly then their brow furrowed. "...I came with you?" They said slowly.

"To a bar?"

They looked almost offended. "What? I'm old enough to be- Wait? This is a bar? It sure doesn't look like-" They cut off with a yippee, yanking their head back behind the bar, just barely avoiding having their brains blasted all over the floor.

Damn, Cub's gonna get killed out here real quick.

"I don't care, just get out," He hissed.

"But-"

Meouch fired into the crowed several times then roared at the star elf. 

"Get the hell out!"

Strive flinched, they never liked being sweared at, but did as they were told and took the opportunity to flee.

As soon as Strive was out of sight, almost all of the tension ran out of Meouch's shoulders but not all of it however as he was still in combat, but Strive was safe and that was all that mattered.

_Wow, that sounded really cheezy._

Meouch pulled the trigger but instead of a laser all he got was a click. His eyes shot open in shock and he ducked under the table again, sweat trailing down his face.

_Well...I'm screwed._

_No, think Meouch think. What would the others do in this situation?_

_Charge into them without giving a damn? No, he wasn't laser proof._

_Try to talk them down? What? Why was that a thought in the first place?_

_Cry in silent frustration? Okay, that's just stupid._

_Make up an intricate and well thought out plan and-_

_Y'know what, screw it. I'm just gonna throw this table at them._

And he did throw the pool table at them but he didn't stay to look at the carnage, the screams were enough to tell him he hit his mark. He grinned.

He ran over to a door. Locked but that should not be a problem. He wasn't too familiar with door controls, machinery was Sung's forte not his, but it should be a quick fix. He opened the control panel and swiftly got to work.

However, soon after in the middle of working on it, he heard a click and froze. Then there was a whirring noise and he heard footsteps rushing over to him.

"Meouch! Look out!"

Everything happened too quick for the lion-man to react. Meouch winched, squeezing his eyes shut. He expected pain and death but it never came. Still the smell of burning flesh was very much in the air and Meouch was very confused by it.

He looked over his shoulder. There was a gun man in the distance glaring at him intently but had ceased firing at the moment for some reason. Steam and smoke rouse up from something below his line of sight. He looked down and saw-

"WHAT THE FUCK, STRIVE!?"

Strive laid on the floor in a smoldering heap, a deep gaping hole in their chest just below their gem. The purple stained tile floor could be seen through the layers of burnt flesh and viscera. Meouch gagged.

They glanced up and smiled at Meouch like nothing was wrong. Like they didn't have a giant fucking hole in them.

"Saved you," They said, pleased at what they had done.

Then they laid their head back down on the cold hard floor, eyes slipping close for what seemed to be the last time.

_No. No. Not happening. Not on his watch. Nope._

He picked them up, cradled them against his arm and chest, not at all caring if they bled on him. He used his free hand to lift their chin so they would face him. "Cu- Strive stay with me!" he commanded.

Strive gave no response, no flutter of their eye lids and no movement. They were just a dead weight in Meouch's arms.

_This had to be joke. A horrible, stupid prank._

"Strive, this isn't fucking funny!" Meouch sweared again but he didn't care. Tears stung his eyes despite his anger.

He wanted them to say something or anything at all to let him know they were still alive.

_Just say something._

_Come on._

_Please._

_Just... Say something, Cub._

Meouch nuzzled into the crook of their neck and sobbed. The fading warmth and the scent of their clothes did nothing to comfort him.

_What the hell, man?_

_Why?_

_They didn't deserve this._

_It should've been him..._

A click rang out in the room.

Meouch raised his head. The Gun-Man in the distance clicked his gun a few more times then dropped the now empty gun. Meouch's lips curled back into a snarl, a low dangerous growl emanating from his throat.

**It was 'his' fault.**

**'He' murdered Strive.**

**'He' will pay.**

Using the last of his self control, Meouch gently laid Strive's body back on the cold tile floor and slowly made his way towards the gun-man.

  
The Gun-Man took a step back, overwhelming terror fitting every inch of his being over the sight of the Lion-Man slowly walking towards him with eyes of cold anger.

  
Meouch never felt this much anger in his life before. It was a murderous rage. He wanted to rip someone apart. He wanted to be paid back in blood for his loss. He wondered if this is what Havve must've felt on occasion.

  
The Gun-Man screamed, unable to contain his fear anymore, and ran down the hallway.

  
Meouch roared and gave chase.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading. Please leave a comment/like or anything else if you wish. Hope you have a nice day. <3


	3. Sticks And Stones May Not Break My Bones, But Words Will Always Hurt Me.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> During an argument with Strive, Phobos says something he regrets. Little does he know that was the last thing he said to him...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ack! It's been months since I updated.
> 
> Yeah I kinda fell out of the fandom for a bit. :/ But this chapter was mostly finished at the time and I don't know why I didn't put this up sooner, sorry about that.
> 
> Welp, the next chapter is Havve's and it's my favorite chapter so hopefully It'll come out sooner.

"Why are you yelling at me?" Strive asked, glaring down at Phobos hands on their hips.

The kid was stubborn as all hell and he wasn't in the mood for this.

He just wasn't in the mood.

Phobos didn't move from his chair. He folded his arms and he pulled his lips into a tight frown behind his mask. "Take a hint! I don't want to talk about it!" he said, and before he could stop himself he added, "Are you dense?!"

"What?" Strive flashed a look of indignance, a look that said 'how could you say such a thing!?' "I was only trying to help."

"Well maybe... You're helping a little too much!?"

"Wha- What? This argument is dumb and you know it."

"Then why don't you leave, Kid!?"

A deep all encompassing silence devoured Phobos' room.

Those words shocked Strive right down to their core. Their ears flopped down and they stared at him with a look of betrayal. 

The pure venomous tone he had when saying it did not imply that they should just leave the room. It sounded like Phobos wanted them to leave the Starlight Brigade altogether.

Their lip trembled, the tears collecting in their eyes threatening to spill over. "W-What?"

"Get out, Kid, I don't want you here."

_We don't want you here._

The anger from the injustice of the situation bubbled inside of Strive. They clenched their fists, blinking their tears away and they snarled at Phobos as their anger erupted.

"I AM NOT A KID!" they screamed, stomping out and slamming the door shut behind them with enough force to shake the room.

_You sure act like one_ , Phobos thought bitterly.

...

Phobos sighed in the silence of his room. He just finished working on his newest song, of course he had to show it to the others to let him know what they thought about it and to make changes and such, but for now he needed a break.

After hours of working by himself, Phobos had calmed down and now was in a more clearer mindset then earlier but now, as the thoughts came in and wouldn't leave him alone, he became restless.

What were they fighting about again?

Try as he might, Phobos couldn't remember what started the argument with Strive. It was like he just came into existence right in the middle of it. Strange. He would've pondered it further if other thoughts weren't going through his mind.

Why was he so angry? He was a bit cranky yes but that didn't justify acting like that towards Strive.

Heck, the implication was that he didn't need them and that wasn't true. That wasn't true at all. He needed them. Everyone needed them.

Phobos hugged himself and sighed again.

_What have I done?_

_I need to go apologize right away._

He got up, intending to leave his room to go find Strive, only to get immediately thrown into the wall as the ship rocked from a heavy impact. He groaned. Ugh, that's gonna leave a mark.. Despite his disorientation, he quickly became aware of the blaring alarm and the now red lights in his room.

Confused and panicked, Phobos got to his feet, leaned against the wall for support and struggled to the door while the ship continued to shake.

_What's going on!?_

"Phobos, we need you out here!" Sung called from the ship's intercom. "Get to the dock immediately!"

"I'm TRY-iiinnng!" He said, voice wavering as he was slammed into another wall. With great difficulty, he stumbled down the hall.

He made it to the conference room. The room's main table was tipped over and some ceiling supports were laying on the floor. Another hit rocked the ship and the loud screech of metal boomed above. Phobos

lunged out of the way of a support beam crashing to the floor. After landing on his side, he looked at the beam that almost crushed him and sighed.

_That was a close one._

But from this new angle on the floor he saw something strange. Under one of the fallen beams was a puddle of purple liquid.

_What is- What is that?_

He couldn't see anything laying underneath it but either way a feeling of sneaking horror slowly creeped up on him. Phobos held his breath, heart about to leap out of his chest as he slowly approached the beam.

_Please... For the love of god. Please let it be grape juice someone spilled._

Slowly, Phobos peered over the beam and looked down.

He screamed.

Strive was pinned underneath the beam, their head, shoulders and right arm being the only part of their body peaking out from underneath it. They were submerged in a puddle of their own blood.

No No No

NONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONONO

"STRIVE!" He howled, pushing against the beam with all his strength. He had to get it off of them now! 

The beam didn't move an inch.

No matter how much he pushed he just wasn't strong enough. 

But it didn't matter anyway.

They were already dead.

No longer having the energy to stand, He slid down to his knees and stared at the floor.

"Phobos, where are you right now!" Sung called from the radio.

Phobos was too choked up to answer.

"We need you."

"-I-I- ...I"

"Where is Strive we need-"

" **STRIVE IS DEAD!** " Phobos screamed.

The radio went deadly silent, the conference room was the same way except for Phobos' sobs and the occasional rumble of the ship.

"...LEAVE HIM BE," Havve's voice seemed to boom in the quite of the room, then the communications were turned off.

Phobos clutched his head with both hands. 

He couldn't fight like this.

He could careless if he died right now, it was just as well. Maybe in the afterlife he could tell Strive how much they meant to him then.

The last thing he said to them was that he didn't want them here.

_Why did he say that!_

Strive died thinking he hated them.

"I didn't mean it!" He plead to their corpse as if they could hear his words somehow, "I'm so sorry, Strive. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry..."

His mantra trailed off into silence and with it the last words he would ever speak in his life.

If he never said those words, Strive might've survived. If he never said anything this never would've happened. He never wanted to speak ever again, lest he got another loved one killed.

Phobos just recently got his voice back after the trauma of losing his homeworld and now he lost it all over again.

And he didn't think he would ever get it back this time.


End file.
